July 19, 2021: Pakistan on Monday signed a memorandum of understanding with gaming company Garena to hold a national e-sports tournament in the country.
The announcement was made by Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry at the signing ceremony of the MoU. “Grena is a well-known company,” Fawad said, adding that “Freefire (a war royale game), in conjunction with Bigo, is hosting a national tournament for the first time.”
The Minister further said that some 567 teams of Pakistan will participate in the gaming event.
“The winners of the event will be awarded prizes of up to Rs 10 million. The winning team will also be able to compete in an international competition where the prizes are [collectively] up to $2 million.”
Fawad called it an opportunity for gaming fans to prosper. “This is a big step towards e-sports and it will enable our youth to participate. Over time, the world’s largest companies will become part of this pool. This program will provide an important opportunity for Pakistani youth.”
Video games have become a booming business over the last few decades. Revenue in this sector is expected to reach $196 billion by 2022. E-sports – along with professional video game competitions – are themselves developing into a very lucrative industry, not surprisingly, gamers are also benefiting. Top players are able to collect salaries and endorsement deals earned by traditional athletes and Pakistan is not far behind.
In February last year, 20-year-old Pakistan e-gamer Sumail Hassan Syed was named the highest-earning player to date, earning $ 3.6 million.
Hassan made history in 2015 when he helped his team in China, the Evil Genius, claim the Defense of the Ancients 2 (Dota 2) Asian Championship. Hassan played a key role in the team’s success.
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